RC House Style

Rev. 9/2022

In general, Romantic Circles follows the Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition). All citations should follow CMOS’s “notes and bibliography style” (as opposed to the author-date variety): “If the bibliography includes all works cited in the notes, the notes need not duplicate the source information in full because readers can consult the bibliography for publication details and other information. In works with no bibliography or only a selected list, full details must be given in a note at first mention of any work cited; subsequent citations need only include a short form” (CMOS 14.19).

FORMATTING

layout

• Standardize layouts to aid in the encoding process (this applies to all essays, not just those getting TEI-ed) with the following checklist:
  • 12-point, Times New Roman font
  • Double-space throughout
  • Use MS Word–linked endnotes, rather than footnotes
  • 1-inch margins
  • Indent block quotes and verse 1 in from left; prose should be double spaced, while verse should be single spaced
  • Remove section breaks and other invisible marks in Word (hint: use the “show/hide” button that looks like a paragraph symbol)
  • Use roman numerals for any numbered headings
  • All essays should be under 5,000 words and all abstracts should be under 150 words.

quotations

• Make sure that block quotes and verse are surrounded by paragraph text;
  • i.e., if you can avoid it, don’t end a paragraph in a block quote.
• If your quotation contains more than one line from the poem use forward slashes (/) between each line of the poem.
  • For line breaks that occur between stanzas, use a double forward slash (//).
• If emphasis exists in a quotation, a note is needed only if the emphasis was added by the author.
  • “Emphasis added” (not “emphasis mine,” etc.) is the correct phrase, and it should follow the source and page number in the parenthetical citation, preceded by a semicolon.
  • E.g., “(Smith 80; emphasis added).”
  • Evaluate context and author’s writing style if no note is provided; if in doubt, query author whether an “emphasis added” note is needed.
• Single/double quotation marks from British quotations may be changed as appropriate: for example, single quotation marks used in a block quotation of British text may be changed to double quotation marks.
  • British spellings in quotations should not be changed.
• All quotations should be grammatically incorporated with the text;
  • no “disembodied” quotes without introduction or explication should exist in the essay.
• Per CMOS, the initial letter in a quotation can be changed from lowercase to uppercase, or vice versa, depending on context, without the need for brackets necessary.
  • Two rules of thumb here: (1) When grammatically remote from rest of sentence, usually caps will be used; and (2) When a quotation or block quote forms a complete sentence following a colon, capitalize initial letter.
• For in-text parenthetical citations occurring within another parenthetical, use brackets.
  • Example: “Despite Rousseau’s attempts to settle passion into its place, passion’s prewriting in the business of survival and articulation becomes, in Rousseau’s anthropological scheme, inverted (articulation as subdivision of sound and meaning, understanding and reason, that is “the opening and closure of a cleft” [Johnson 128], according to Derrida, or the making of a judgment).”
  • See also CMOS 6.97 and 6.101.
• Use the standard American method of punctuation around quotation marks, following CMOS 6.9–10:
  • “Periods and commas precede closing quotation marks, whether double or single,” but “colons and semicolons—unlike periods and commas—follow closing quotation marks; question marks and exclamation points following closing quotation marks unless they belong within the quoted matter.”

capitalization

• Enforce headline-style capitalization across all titles and heads (excepting foreign titles; follow CMOS 11.6).
• Capitalize “Romanticism” and all its variants, except when “romantic” refers to, e.g., “a romantic date.”
  • Occasionally authors will have theoretical or pedagogical reasons for maintaining the lower-case; in these situations, authors should provide a footnote at the first instance contextualizing the reasons for this decision.
• Regarding capitalization of ethnic groups by color, RC style is to defer to the preference of individual authors and editors.
  • An author’s preferred usage should, of course, be consistently enforced throughout an essay.
• Capitalize cultural regions of the world (West, East, Western mores, Eastern philosophy, etc.); follow CMOS 8.46.
• For capitalization of disciplines, courses, awards, etc., follow CMOS 8.82–86 (lowercase subjects, capitalize specific course names).
• Other miscellaneous conventions:
  • Roman Republic, Roman Empire, but republic, empire, American republic, etc.
  • The Left or the Right, but leftist, left wing, etc.

number formatting

• Spell out whole numbers from one through nine and any number beginning a sentence (CMOS 9.3).
• Spell out centuries and hyphenate per CMOS 7.85 when used adjectivally: mid-eighteenth century, twentieth century, twenty-first century, twenty-first-century politics.
• Spell out ordinal numbers under 101 in running text (“one hundredth” but “101st”).
• Abbreviate all number ranges (typically page number references) by including in the second number only the changed part of the first (e.g., 234–5, 25000–1).
  • Use an en dash, not a hyphen.
• Treat inclusive dates as follows:
  • 187–189 B.C.E.
  • 1920–1929 (from 1920 to 1929 or between 1920 and 1929)
  • 1950s and 1960s (not 1950s and 60s; not ’50s and ’60s)

PUNCTUATION

spaces

• One space between sentences, one space after colon and semicolon. The copyeditor should perform a global search and replace all double spaces with single spaces.
• Spaces around and within ellipse (text . . . text)
• No spaces around em dash (—)
• Spaces within initials (M. C. Escher)

dashes

• Use em dash for grammatical asides, interpolations, and interrupted speech.
• The em dash is not a double hyphen but a unique character (—).
• In the bibliography, the three em dash is used when multiple works are cited by the same author (———).
• The en dash is used in numbers or dates (see CMOS 9.60) and in some compound adjectives (see CMOS 6.78–81).

apostrophes

• For possessives of words/names ending in “s” or “z,” follow CMOS 7.15–28.
  • E.g., Williams’s, Decartes’s, Euripides’s; but the Williamses’ dog, at the Browns’ place.
• Ensure the apostrophe’s tail is “pointing” in the correct direction.

commas

• Use serial commas (Oxford comma) for lists (e.g., metaphor, analogy, and place)
• Do not use a comma before “Jr.”

periods

• Use periods and all caps on C.E. and B.C.E.;
  • use periods with lowercase on a.m. and p.m.
• Use periods in M.A., M.F.A., J.D., and Ph.D.
• Use periods in U.S. / U.K. when used adjectivally;
  • as nouns, spell out (i.e., United States, United Kingdom).
• Do not use a period in a sentence that ends with a question mark or exclamation point, even if that question mark or exclamation point is part of the title of a work
  • e.g., I came across David Damrosch’s book What Is World Literature?.
  • See CMOS 6.124.

hyphens

• For hyphenation of compounds and prefixes, see CMOS 7.85. Close up all prefixes unless some confusion would result.
  • Exceptions: repeated vowel, compound noun, or repeated prefix; if in doubt, refer to Merriam-Webster.) For specific cases and exceptions, see the formatting guide below.
• Use the format “mixed government,” but “mixed-government theory” (hyphenate adjectival phrases before but not after the noun they modify)
• Use the no-hyphen format for both noun and adjective phrases.
  • “African American,” “Asian American,” etc.,

colons

• Following CMOS, it is not RC style to capitalize the word following a colon, unless the colon introduces two or more sentences or begins a quote (see CMOS 6.61).
• After short introductory phrases, RC prefers that a comma instead of a colon be used.
  • Example: “He said, ‘I quit.’” (Not “He said: ‘I quit.’”)

ellipses

• Ellipses are not needed at the beginning or end of a quotation unless the quoted sentence is deliberately incomplete (CMOS 13.50).
• Three- and four-dot ellipses are both acceptable if they are used correctly in context (see CMOS 13.51–54).
• For three-dot ellipses, there should be internal spaces before, after, and internally.
  • In a four-dot ellipsis, the first acts as a period at the end of a sentence—that period should be right up against the text.

ampersand

• No ampersands should be used in running text or titles, only in direct quotation/facsimile.
• Even in notes, use the form “etc.,” not “&c.”

USAGE & WRITING STYLE

• Generally avoid sentence fragments, though their occasional use for effect is permissible.
• Avoid comma splices. The material after a coordinating conjunction should only take a comma before the “and,” “but,” “for,” “nor,” “or,” “yet,” or “so” if it is an independent clause.
  • Never use commas around a conjunctive adverb (i.e., however, furthermore, therefore, thus, moreover); the correct form is: “I never said that; however, I could have.”
• In general, use a comma after a dependent clause;
  • e.g., “When I proofread some essays for RC, I noticed many people not using commas when they should have.”
  • If the sentence or opening clause is very short, the comma is not always necessary.
• Americanize British spellings (except in direct quotations and titles;
  • e.g., A Defence of Poetry).
• Use full names upon first mention of a source for primary authors and when people/titles are mentioned directly in the main text.
• Upon first mention of works, provide a work’s full title and put the date of publication in parentheses after the title, unless already given in the text proper.
  • When the date is approximate, use a question mark after the best guess of the date.
  • When the date is unknown, use (date unknown).
  • When there are multiple editions, defer to the first edition unless another edition is specified in the Works Cited.
  • If published serially, use a range.
• All references to other works should employ present-tense verbs unless the use of past tense informs the argument
  • (i.e., in general, “Smith concedes,” not “Smith conceded”).
• Avoid unnecessary use of the passive voice.
• Avoid splitting infinitives, except for sense (and in some cases a split is nearly impossible to avoid, as in “I expect citations to Smith’s article to more than double this year.”)
• RC discourages overuse of italics for emphasis when such use does not alter the sense of a phrase/sentence or is not needed for selective vocal emphasis. In general, an author’s prose itself should supply intended emphasis in most cases.
• Similarly, scare quotes should not be used unless an author is using a word or phrase in an unusual, novel, or ironic sense.
• When a word or term is not used functionally but is referred to as itself (as in defining a term), use italics on first occurrence and roman thereafter.
• Follow CMOS 5.72 on the use of “a” or “an” before a vowel:
  • go by sound (“a historical treatise”; “an hour ago”; “a eulogy”
• The Latin abbreviations e.g. (“for example”) and i.e. (“that is”) should not be used in running text;
  • when used parenthetically and in notes, the abbreviations are always followed by a comma (“i.e., Shelley likely never said the phrase in question”).
• For a list of proper preposition use with specific nouns, verbs, and adjectives, see CMOS 5.191
  • (e.g., “dissimilar to” not “dissimilar from”).
• Follow the Glossary of Problematic Words and Phrases provided at CMOS 5.220 in conjunction with Merriam-Webster’s Online for all other questions of proper word usage
  • e.g., between vs. among vs. amid; compelled vs. impelled; ensure vs. insure; etc.

FIGURES & MULTIMEDIA

images / illustrations / artwork

• Any visual medium contained in an article—all images, illustrations, artwork, etc. must contain a caption.
  • This is both to provide context for readers and to make the site more accessible to those with visual disabilities.
• If more than one figure of any type is contained in an article, the images should be numbered, as appropriate, and all textual references should correspond to these numbers (Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.).
• The format should be:
  • Figure 1: Caption
  • Spell out “Figure”
  • Use arabic numerals
  • The caption should be written with sentence style capitalization, no bold or italics.
  • Use end punctuation only 1) if the caption is a complete sentence or 2) if one or more complete sentences follow the caption.
• All images should be high-res (with a minimum width or height of 1500 pixels) in either .jpg or TIFF file formats.

fair use of multimedia

• All images should either be designated “fair use” (see the Creative Commons site for more information), or permissions need to be obtained.
  • Please provide your editor with all image permissions.
• Check with the RC general editors if questions or issues arise regarding fair use policies.

BIBLIOGRAPHY, QUOTATIONS, AND NOTES

in-text citations using endnotes

• No citations in abstracts (following CMOS 1.93).
  • If found, query author on removal/rewriting to avoid.
• When a note combines a citation with commentary, the source comes first. A period usually separates the citation from the commentary.
  • E.g., (1. Shakespeare, Julius Caesar, act 3, sc. 1. Caesar’s claim of constancy should be taken with a grain of salt.)
• It is not permissible for authors to insert endnotes at the end of titles or headings in the text.
• For sources that are repeatedly cited, create an appropriate abbreviation for the source that is introduced in the first endnote.
  • E.g., 1. François Furet, The Passing of an Illusion: The Idea of Communism in the Twentieth Century, trans. Deborah Furet (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999), 368 (hereafter cited in text as PI).

in-text citations for poetry using endnotes

• RC discourages the citing of line numbers from short poems in the running text;
  • if such numbering is important/relevant, follow CMOS 14.156 in avoiding “l.” and “ll.” (use “line” or “lines” instead) and cite the line numbers parenthetically.
• Three or more lines of verse should be set off as a blockquote.
  • Per CMOS, within each piece or stanza, the indentation pattern of the original should be reproduced (but indents should be distinguished from runover lines; see 13.27).
• Do not cite any line numbers if: a) the poem is shorter than a few pages (100 lines) or b) they’re not numbered in the original.

conventions for the bibliography and endnote citations

• See the CMOS’s Citation Quick Guide for more complete information.
• Cite all scholarly articles as print sources unless the article’s original pagination is unavailable.
• Do not list database retrieval information unless no page numbers are provided;
  • in this case, attempt to locate print facsimile (PDF) through your library’s databases.
• When citing multi-volume works, always provide the name of the overall work in addition to any individual volume names.
• When possible, use DOIs instead of html links (see CMOS 14.8).
• Check that all URLs are direct (permalinks), short, and unbroken (see CMOS 14.9).
• Include all https:// when citing URLs.

publisher information in citations

• Only one publisher per book edition should be used in the bibliography;
  • if book is a joint imprint, use the first press listed, consult online sources to determine which to use, and/or choose the publisher most relevant to the essay.
• Do not include “The,” “Inc.” or “& Co.,” etc., in publishers’ names.
  • “Books” is typically retained.
  • “Press” and “Publisher” can be omitted if it contextually makes sense.
  • The word University should be abbreviated to Univ.

citation-related abbreviations

• Do not use “ibid” (meaning “in the same place already mentioned”) or “op. cit” in the endnotes or bibliography.
  • Instead, simply use a shortened or even an abbreviated citation.
• Do not use “passim,” “ff,” or “f” in conjunction with page numbers.
  • Query author to provide inclusive page numbers or a comma-delineated list of specific pages. —————————————————————————————————————

SPELLING / FORMATTING GUIDE

• 3D
• alt-right
• Anglo-American; Anglo-centric
• antifeminist, antihero; but anti-Jacobin, anti–French Revolution
• a priori (no italics)
• autobiographical, autoethnographic
• best seller / best-selling novel
• bystander
• caretaking / care-tend
• classical theory / classical scholar / Classics
• co-create/co-creative
• ecocriticism; ecomodern; ecomedia / but eco-queer (familiar forms closed, novel forms open)
• email
• extranational, extrarational; but extra-ambiguous
• frisson
• geo-tracking
• Global South
• hard-pressed (to)
• humanness; humanlike
• interdependence
• internet; the net
• joy-killing (as adj.)
• killjoy
• life-form
• New Criticism
• nongovernmental, nonpoetic, nonfiction, nonnegotiable, but non-Western
• Orientalism, Orientalist
• pathbreaking
• poststructuralism, postmodernism, posthumanism, postwar, etc.
• pre-publication
• president, presidential, the presidency; Washington, the first president; but President Washington, Mr. President
• pro-life, pro-choice
• quasi-professional, quasi-autobiographical (hypenated as adj. unless closed in MW)
• reread, rereading, redomesticate, reedit
• but re-evaluate
• Revolutionary (only if in reference to American or French Revolutions)
• sociopolitical; but socio-ecological
• structuralist, structuralism
• T-shirt
• techno-rational, techno-optimist
• ultraconservative, ultrasophisticated
• U.S. (used only as adjective or in notes/parentheses), U.K.
• Washington, D.C.
• world-shaking, world-destroying (before or after n., per MW)
• World Wide Web; the web; website
• worshipping, worshipped, worshipper